I say phony. What is that smoke coming from those targets? It looks like one of the targets falls before the gymnast even shoots it. A pretty good production for propoganda purposes, but the cheif commie doesn't even know the proper shooting stance.

DonNikmare

July 24, 2005, 01:55 AM

No kidding! One guy in the video takes a shovel spear thrown at him right in the stomach :what:

I once went to a pallace of the the former Bulgarian communist dictator on the Black sea. They had made him an artificial cove with rocks to eliminate any big waves or undertoe.

My brother and I went to the end of a peer about 25 yards in and jumped off at the same time, I feet first and he head in. Come to find out it was waist deep - my brother almost broke his neck. :mad:

They had trucked and thrown in so enough sand to make the whole cove waist deep. Didn't want that old bastard to drawn, I guess. :barf:

Nik

Ridge

July 24, 2005, 02:05 AM

I second the phony bit about the shooting,the first black target does fall before the guy shoots.

Impressive physical stuff but it wouldn't work against a sniper hidden in the bushes,or an air strike.

psyopspec

July 24, 2005, 03:50 AM

A pretty good production for propoganda purposes

Bingo.

Additonally, breaking a (probably pre-cut) bambo stick over a person's arm or back doesn't mean that 5.56 couldn't penetrate their torso or head. They're fast and skillful, but not as skillful as most American infantry and certainly not faster than 1300 fps.

Hacker15E

July 24, 2005, 06:41 AM

More importantly, this b@stard is why about 13,000 G.I.s are over in South Korea staring him down across the DMZ.

21H40

July 24, 2005, 06:48 AM

I thought that GI's were in Korea because if you volunteer for DMZ you don't have to rotate through OIF/OEF :neener:

One solution to highly skilled bodyguards has always been bigger guns with lots of ammo in a small area (AC-130). :evil:

armoredman

July 24, 2005, 09:05 AM

If his bodyguards are incorruptable, highly skilled fanatics, why was there one as an obvious defector? Kim, you still gotta watch your flabby back....BS, well made and humorous BS, but BS.

Onmilo

July 24, 2005, 11:03 AM

You want to go up against George lls bodyguards????

VIP Security tends to attract the best of the best in the business.

StopTheGrays

July 24, 2005, 11:14 AM

+1 for BS
The bodyguard stuff reminded me of Kung-fu theater, I half expected Bruce Lee to jump out and lay the smack down. :rolleyes:

lysander

July 24, 2005, 11:51 AM

Propoganda film or not I would be willing to bet you that his "palace guards" are highly trained, highly motivated, and devoted to a fault. I have read unverified reports that his bodyguards and commandos are selected from the ranks of orphanages...and indoctrinated to the point that they view the state and Kim Jong Il as mother/father....that is a scary proposition.

For more insight into NK I would recommend the recent and highly lauded documentary titled: A State of Mind (http://www.astateofmind.co.uk/default.aspx)

dfariswheel

July 24, 2005, 02:57 PM

From the pure standpoint of being an actual "presidential" protection unit, they're probably not that good.

I once talked to a retired Secret Service veteran, and he said most third world dictators had bodyguards that were more in the line of bully-boys than actual protection against the kind of assassination situations our President might face.

He said you could always tell their actual effectiveness at the real job, because they mostly went in for flashy para-military training and skills.

He said that being a hand-to-hand expert and being good with an assault rifle was nice, but when the real threat is a sniper, bomber, or just a nut in the crowd with a pistol, all the para-military stuff is a non-starter.

REAL bodyguards are very low-profile. The pros are the bland looking men in the background who never look at the man their guarding.
They're looking for the threat.

Another failing of these type of guard is, they're TOO close to their man.
Like Kim Ill's raised from childhood, Hitlers True Believers, and Saddam's childhood friend turned bodyguard, they're Hero worshipers.
As such, they're really watching their Hero, not for real threats.

The US Secret Service serve the President. They may actually HATE him, but it's the OFFICE they guard.
As such, they are able to stand back and keep their eye on the real purpose of they're job.

According to him, the tough-guy bully-boys usual contribution to the job involves shooting down everybody, innocent or guilty, in immediate range AFTER someone takes out the Man.

His best statement was, that these third world guards are like a cheap, nickel-plated pearl-handled Spanish made pistol: Flashy and looks good, but don't expect much when push comes to shove.

Joejojoba111

July 24, 2005, 06:02 PM

I think the guy might have been bragging. I can't believe, without solid evidence, that bodyguards would not know to scan the crowd.

And Saddam had better protection. Body doubles and a minimum of 15,000 soldiers everywhere he goes. Whether it was the real Saddam or not, no-one knows, but there was always at least 1 republican guards division immediately on-hand.

berettashotgun

July 24, 2005, 06:13 PM

Is that why I saw the A-hole in his boxers? :neener:

KriegHund

July 24, 2005, 06:18 PM

15,000 soldiers doesnt do much against one rebel man with an old SVD or MN.

Wouldnt surprise if it was BS, but it was pretty cool nevertheless.

LiquidTension

July 24, 2005, 06:47 PM

I'm pretty sure I saw that footage in an old kung fu flick.

scubie02

July 24, 2005, 09:07 PM

i kind of like how the translator even chuckled for the guy when he laughed...

DigMe

July 25, 2005, 10:47 AM

It's good these guys are learning the really important tactical concepts...such as it's always best to do a flip off of a wall instead of just hopping down. Your enemy will be so frightened by your flipping abilities that he will possibly set a new 100m dash record running away. Same thing with the board breaking. If there's two of you one should always immediately pull out a 2x4 and break it over your partner's head when confronted by the enemy.

We can also just completely trash our super-secret special ops knife throwing training program...these guys are just too good at dodging thrown-knives. There goes our whole primary attack plan for North Korea.

This looked like a scene from "A Fistful of Yen."

brad cook

meathammer

July 25, 2005, 11:24 AM

There are some malls here that could use some of these guys. .308 trauma plate? Ha! I'll deflect the round with my super-human abdomen and do a back flip while double-tapping the perp, with a loud Hiyaaaah!

I can't think of the dictator without having images from Team America. :D

30Cal

July 25, 2005, 02:21 PM

Kim is a big film nut. He's a nut, and he likes films, and has made several. He's also had his favorite ROK actress and director kidnapped. I wouldn't be surprised if he himself scripted this one.

Nathanael_Greene

July 25, 2005, 05:04 PM

Since they're protecting the guy who supposedly routinely shoots in the low 50's when playing 18 holes of golf, something tells me this "bodyguard" film was about as authentic as his score card.

Davo

July 25, 2005, 06:15 PM

I recently got to meet a few SS (and a former president :) ), actually spent several hours with them. I must say I was impressed with the degree of professionalism they exhibited. The SS were well armed, well dressed, and very aware. We discussed their training regimine, and there was an understanding that there are times when the worlds best security cant protect fully. Thats just a fact. They also said that there are foriegn druglords and dictators that make the US SS look small by comparison.
Its a tough job, but id say they do it well.
Oh and i agree the Kims guards are more propaganda than anything else. What you REALLY need to look out for are his Hans Blix eating guard catfish-now those are scary!